Welcome to Urban Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. Urban Studies is an interdisciplinary program in the College of Arts & Sciences. It draws on faculty and resources across the university and the city to offer students a multi-faceted approach to the study of urban trends. More...

Save the Date: Annual Lecture Oct. 30th

New Study Shows How Arts and Culture Improve Health, Safety and Well-being in NYC

Low- and moderate-income residents in NYC neighborhoods with many cultural resources are healthier, better educated, and safer overall than those in similar communities with fewer creative resources, according to a groundbreaking study from Penn's School of Social Policy & Practice, led by Mark Stern, co-director of Urban Studies. To find out more about this study, visit their website or read Penn Current's recent article. (Photo is a heat map of NYC, provided by NASA).

Check out our list of Urbs-related internships and other opportunities

Use this link to see our list of Urbs-related internships. These often come to us from Urban Studies alums, who are specifically seeking Urban Studies students!

Urban Studies Research Guide

If you're looking for where to start your Urban Studies research, then look no further. Urbs librarian Deborah Bishov has created a handy Urban Studies Research guide, complete with online text resources as well as mapping tools, U.S. Census data and more. Here's the link!

Showcasing Student Work

During the Spring 2018 semester, students in URBS 200 will study the economic, social, and cultural life of a specific Philly neightborhood. Click here to see student work from previous semesters!

Urban Studies Lecturer Michael Nairn, along with other researchers, are working to find solutions to mitigate flooding in Philadelphia’s Eastwick neighborhood. The neighborhood is located in a part of Southwest Philadelphia with the lowest elevation in the city, and is almost completely surrounded by water. Projections of a rising sea-level are expected to increase the amount of flooding Eastwick experiences.

Alexa Salas, along with Camilo Toro C'17, and Yaneli Arizmendi Nu'17 will create Lanzando Líderes (Launching Leaders), a community-based after-school program for Latino high school students in South Philadelphia. Alexa, Camilo, and Yaneli will work with Latino immigrant families and members of the community to develop an experiential, bilingual, culturally inclusive curriculum to serve as the touchstone for the program.

Alumni Achievements

Sharna Goldseker (URBS '96) recently published a book with co-author Michael Moody entitled, Generation Impact: How Next Gen Donors Are Revolutionizing Giving. Based on original research and extensive in-person interviews with next gen donors including Justin Rockefeller, Hannah Quimby, Alex Soros, Katherine Lorenz, John R.